The Washington Redskins talented tight end Chris Cooley did not get one pass thrown his way in the Redskins 20-17 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.  The poor blocking by the offensive line has forced Cooley to stay in and block more in recent games, and when starting tackle Chris Samuels was hurt early in the game Sunday, Cooley had to stay and block most of the game.  He didn’t even get one pass thrown his way.  Cooley had 14 catches in the first two games, but only has eight in the past three games.  Cooley is one of the best tight ends in the league and is a dangerous option in the passing game.  Although Cooley is not getting as many touches as he should, he is still leading the Redskins in receptions with 22.  He has 254 receiving yards and two touchdowns.  Sunday’s loss was the first time since Cooley’s rookie year in 2004 that he did not catch a pass.  The Skins’ passing game is 22nd in the league, so they need QB Jason Campbell’s best target Cooley down field catching passes, not back blocking.

The Washington Redskins (2-3) could not get much going offensively Sunday and lost to the previously winless Carolina Panthers (1-3).  The Redskins were up 17-2 after a Clinton Portis touchdown run with 10 minutes to play in the 3rd quarter.  Portis finished the contest with only 57 yards on 19 carries (3.0 avg), but he did have both of the Redskins touchdowns.  The Redskins looked like they were going to win easily, but they could not keep their lead and let the Panthers score 18 unanswered points.

The Panthers made some adjustments as halftime as all of their 18 offensive points came in the second half.  The only points the Panthers could get in the first half came from a safety.  Thomas Davis tackled Portis in the endzone during the second quarter for the two points.  The Panthers defense looked improved but it was more of the Redskins offense not making plays.  Campbell only passed for 145 yards on 17/23 (74%), but he did have a touchdown.  Campbell did not throw any picks, but he just was not very aggressive and rarely looked to put the ball down field.  The Redskins are at home next week playing the winless Kansas City Chiefs, but they have now lost two games to a winless team and need to make sure they come in focused against the Chiefs.

The Washington Redskins (2-2) are taking on another win-less team this week, as they are on the road against the Carolina Panthers (0-3).  The Redskins two wins were both against win-less teams and they are looking to continue that trend.  The Redskins should have a lot of success running the ball since the Panthers are the worst in the league at stopping the run.  They give up 183 rushing yards per game, so look for Redskins’ running back Clinton Portis to get a lot of carries.  Portis has rushed for 281 yards on 72 carries (3.9 avg) so far this year and has failed to rush for 100 yards in a game and has no touchdowns.  He could have himself a breakout game against the Panthers pathetic run defense, so I am expecting him to finally break that 100-yard barrier.

The Skins D is not very good at stopping the run either, so the Panthers’ running back DeAngelo Williams could have a big game.  Williams has rushed for 180 yards on 41 carries (4.4 avg) and has two touchdowns so far this season, so the Redskins need to make sure they slow him down.  They also have to worry about running back Jonathan Stewart, as the second year player has 99 yards on 23 carries (4.3 avg). If they can stop the running game than they will be in great shape to win the game, as the Panthers’ quarterback Jake Delhomme has been having a horrible season and has thrown seven interceptions already.  The Redskins’ quarterback Jason Campbell has had some turnover problems recently as well, as he threw three picks last week.  If Campbell takes care of the ball in this game and if the Skins can limit the Panthers running game, then they should win this one.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  Washington Redskins 28, Carolina Panthers 23

Jason Campbell looks like two different quarterbacks at times this year, and the Redskins need their quarterback to play more consistent.  Campbell was horrible in the first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week but ended up leading them to victory in the second half.  So far this season the Redskins are 2-2 and have not been playing great football.  Campbell has five touchdowns and five interceptions and has thrown for 963 yards on 81/124 attempts (65%).  Campbell has a pretty easy opponent in the win-less Carolina Panthers this week, but a solid game from Campbell against the win-less Detroit Lions in week three didn’t prevent the Redskins from losing.  Still, Campbell needs to step up if the Redskins want to be successful this season.

The Redskins were down 10-0 at the half and they were hearing the boo birds again at home.  But, they came out of the locker room breathing fire in the 3rd quarter scoring 16 points and then they held the Bucs off in the 4th quarter to win the game.  Jason Campbell had a game to forget as he completed 12 of 22 passes for 170 yards with 2 TD passes and 3 INTs.  He also carried the ball 7 times for 20 yards (2.9 ypc).  But he fumbled the ball twice losing one of them.  Clinton Portis was 50/50 to play in this game and all he did was rush for 98 yards on 25 carries (3.9 ypc).  Santana Moss (2 rec, 74 yards) and Chris Cooley (5 rec, 65 yards) each caught 1 TD pass apiece.  The Redskins finished up with 277 total yards on offense (125 rushing, 152 passing) in this game.

Safety Reed Doughty (11 tackles) and LB London Fletcher (9 tackles, sack, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 QB hit) led the way for the Redskins on defense.  The Bucs finished up with 229 total yards on offense (129 rushing, 100 passing) in this game.  The Redskins are now 2-2 on the season.